An inspiring compendium of recipes and advice, Homemade is packed full of ideas for every occasion, from stocking your pantry year-round to relaxed Sunday dinners and entertaining friends and family. Alongside this are household tips and helpful hints on everything from setting your table to selecting the perfect cheeseboard, a guide to wine and cheeses, a chapter on edible gifts, and tips and recipes for canning. Acclaimed cook, writer and TV presenter, Clodagh McKenna has built her reputation on championing local artisans, cooking with the seasons and respecting the traditional ways of doing things. Here she cooks from the heart with stunning recipes for lazy brunches, heavenly afternoon teas, simple dinner parties, delicious lunches and cozy fireside suppers.
Whether you’re cooking for yourself, organizing and decorating your home or preparing for holidays and special occasions, Clodagh sets out to show how easy “homemade” really is and why just taking the time to do something as simple as preparing your own lunchbox can be so much more rewarding and healthy. Be the source of envy at work with a lunch of homemade vegetable chips or a steaming bowl of Spiced Butternut Squash Soup, a New York Reuben or Clodagh’s signature Couscous and Chickpea Salad rather than the same tired sandwich. For family get-togethers choose from five different ways of roasting a chicken, including Thai-Style and Tarragon, White Wine and Garlic Butter. Treat everyone on a cozy fire-side dinner with Warming Cottage Pie and Fondue to Share. Impress friends with a lazy brunch spread featuring Classic Eggs Florentine or Baked Eggs, washed down with Bloody Mary’s and completed with Pecan Swirls.
The perfect modern companion, Homemade offers an essential guide to good food and a reassuring hand in the kitchen. Whatever the occasion, Clodagh’s enthusiasm and easy instructions mean you can make the most of your cupboard staples and the best of the seasons. Homemade is the perfect gift for the holidays and for couples and newlyweds. The book offers inspired recipes and menus for easy, breezy fall and winter entertaining from a homey weekend gathering with family and a lovely afternoon tea on a chilly afternoon with friends to an intimate Christmas cocktail party or an elegant New Year’s Eve supper.
Review
"Whether she's giving me tips and advice on how to cook a good fish dish, the secrets to a good kitchen, or her favorite indulgence of brioche on a Sunday morning, it's clear to see that a love of good food is ingrained in her."—Women's Way, July 2010
"Have you heard of Clodagh McKenna? If not, you will soon. Like millionaire soccer players not named Beckham, F1 drivers, and most European Heads of State, her notoriety has yet to reach our shores, but she’s already famous in much of the world... And she is coming this way, with the release this month of Homemade: Irresistible Recipes For Every Occasion, the first of her books to be published in the US (Kyle Books, $24.95) and the perfect gift for foodie friends who already have everything...So what does Clodagh McKenna do? Better question would be what can’t she do?... You heard it here first: Clodagh McKenna is coming your way!" -- Forbes
From the Publisher
Pine Nut and Rosemary Crusted Lamb
I love the crunchy crust on this lamb dish. You could also use thyme instead of the rosemary. I have often used this recipe for a leg of lamb and it works perfectly.
serves 4
1⁄3 cup pine nuts, roughly chopped
2 tablespoons roughly chopped fresh rosemary
1 garlic clove, crushed
1⁄2 stick butter, melted
4 x 2-3 cutlet racks of lamb, trimmed
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Put the pine nuts, fresh rosemary, and garlic in a bowl and pour over the melted butter. Mix and set aside.
Heat a skillet and seal the racks of lamb on all sides. Place the racks of lamb in an ovenproof dish. Spread the pine nut and rosemary topping over the lamb.
Roast the lamb in the oven for 10-15 minutes for medium and a further 5-10 minutes for well done.
Take out of the oven, loosely cover with foil, and let rest for 10 minutes before serving.
From the Author
My starting point for this book was the Housekeeper's Guide that my mum was given when she first set up home. She still has it--a huge, heavy book with a burlap cover. It's battered round the edges from constant use, and favorite recipe pages are covered in sticky fingerprints. As a child, I used it for pressing flowers, and occasionally insects, but for my mum it was like a housekeeping bible, stuffed with recipes, handy tips, and sound advice. This book is not just for new brides, but also for single dads, independent women, couples, and everyone in between. There are ideas on entertaining, cooking for yourself, friends, and family; and organizing and decorating your home. The book is packed with handy household tips and advice on everything from table settings to how to select the perfect cheese board.
About the Author
After studying in France and New York and training as a chef at Ballymaloe Cookery School in Ireland, Clodagh McKenna set up a series of farmers’ markets throughout Ireland. She currently writes for a variety of Irish newspapers and magazines. To date, she has written two successful cookbooks, each of which was accompanied by a television series. Clodagh also travels extensively, giving cooking demonstrations in the United States, Italy, the United Kingdom, and Holland. She has opened her own cooking school in association with the Village at Lyons in Ireland and launched a line of kitchenware.
“Clodagh’s Irish Food Trails,” Clodagh’s new television series, launched on PBS on May 1, 2012. This 13-part series takes viewers on a fantastic journey through all parts of Ireland—from Valentia Island, the most Westerly tip in county Kerry to Fanad Head in Donegal, the most Northerly point in the country, from Dublin’s fair city to farms hidden in the remotest places in Ireland. With a passion for food and an enthusiasm for travel, Clodagh seeks out the very best in food, farmers’ markets, fishermen and artisan producers the country has to offer. Clodagh, who has recently appeared as a guest on both “The Rachael Ray Show” and “The Nate Berkus Show,” not only introduces viewers to Ireland’s top foodie destinations, but she also takes part in adventures along the way. From visiting the Skelligs Rocks, twelve miles out in the Atlantic perched 600 feet above sea to taking a helicopter trip to Ireland’s famous lighthouse on Fastnet Rock—this series appeals to both travel and food fans alike.
